Monday 30 July 2012 16.16 EDT
First published on Monday 30 July 2012 16.16 EDT

Warwickshire are arguably the best side in the championship but their inability to put away sides they have outplayed hurt them once again here yesterday, when their match against Surrey ended in a draw.

Surrey had followed on 285 runs behind, but by the end of the match had amassed 202 for three in their second innings, bringing back memories of Warwickshire's failure to nail the current champions Lancashire here in May, after making them follow on.

Warwickshire deserve some sympathy. They were convinced they had dismissed Zafar Ansari for 15 on Sunday evening, and television pictures later confirmed they were correct in their notion; but the opener survived and yesterday scored an unbeaten 83, though not one Warwickshirer player applauded when he reached his half-century.

They also had to contend with a pitch that refused to age, and the ball didn't swing or reverse either. In addition to all that, they were robbed of 21 overs because of showers yesterday, although they did make up some of the lost ground after Jeetan Patel and Darren Maddy had pepped up the over rate.

Warwickshire, though, dropped Zander de Bruyn twice. Nor was Jim Troughton's captaincy beyond criticism. He held back Chris Woakes and Keith Barker for the new ball and when they eventually appeared it was too late. He should also have been more positive with his field placings; his faster bowlers deserved more than one slip in the circumstances, and Surrey's batsmen should have been crowded more when Patel bowled.

Surrey were seen to safety by Ansari, 20, and Jason Roy, 22, who put on 89 in 32 overs and batted splendidly. It was a spirited draw after everything that has happened to Surrey recently, and the even better news for the team is that Rory Hamilton-Brown, their captain who has not played since the death of his friend Tom Maynard last month, will make his comeback today, for the second eleven at the Rose Bowl.

Surrey coach Ian Salisbury said last night: "Rory's keen to come back and get on with it. He's been here and he's been watching the boys get stuck in. He's been through tough times – it's been a tough time for everyone – but he's raring to get back now. He's a bit rusty but he's been training and hitting a few balls.

"As for the match, it was heartwarming for a coach to watch young batsmen coming in and playing like that. I'm very proud of them."

Another encouraging development for Surrey is that their fast bowler, Chris Tremlett, will be playing again soon.

Warwickshire were described by Salisbury afterwards as "the No1 side in the country". Their only consolation last night was that Nottinghamshire, their main rivals for the title, also failed to force a victory against Sussex at Trent Bridge.

In fact the real winners yesterday were Somerset, who are also in the hunt and have not been in action in the last round of matches. Their fixture at home to Nottinghamshire next week looks even more meaningful now.